Austria
Austria is one of the constituencies of the Austro-Hungarian Empire and the place where its capital, Vienna, is located. Austria borders Germany to the north, the Italian Republic to the south and Switzerland to the west. It also borders the Crowns of Bohemia, Hungary, and Illyria - the other constituencies of the Empire. History Despite standing amongst the victors of the Weltkrieg, the war revealed the divisions of culture, class, and ideology within the Empire ever so clearly, and the inner unrest continued on as the war ended. Kaiser Karl, following in the footsteps of the assassinated Franz Ferdinand in trying to reform the multinational Austro-Hungarian Empire into something that could survive in the twentieth century, launched a series of large-scale reforms; however, his efforts were largely blocked by nobility of the Hungarian side of the Empire - leading to his plans of federalisation progressing only slowly, and only on the Cisleithanian side of the Empire. In the 1920s, the tensions boiled over: * In Bohemia, the Czechs' and German-Austrians' quarreling about how a federated Bohemia had to look like ended a political standstill and several revolts, * In Galicia-Lodomeria, both Polish and Ruthenian separatist movements were gaining traction, and most importantly * Across Croatia, Bosnia and occupied Montenegro, a Serb-sponsored Pan-Slavic revolution took one city after the other. The latter was, however, in a feat of Habsburg diplomacy, made loyal to Austria in granting the leadership of the Croatian insurrectionaries the Crown of Illyria - a move that unified the South Slavs, under Croatian leadership, loyal to Austria - that however angered the Hungarian side of the Empire, traditionally the overlords of Croatia, even further. However, many feel that there is hope for Austria - the last decades were hard on the Empire, but the effort has started paying off. Cisleithanian Austria, now a federation-state, has calmed down - but the same cannot be said for Transleithania. It is, however, unlikely that the Carpathian basin will continue to remain in Magyar hands, since Hungary's peoples have been gazing upon the liberties across the Leitha, wishing to have such autonomy for themselves. Whether reform will be able to find its way to Hungary, only the Kaiser knows for sure. Politics Military Army The Cisleithanian part of the Austro-Hungarian Army are the I''mperial/Royal Austrian Landwehr'' regiments (German: "kaiserlich/königlich" or k.k., which stands for Imperial Austrian / Royal Bohemian). They consist of fifteen infantry divisions, two specialized mountain divisions, and one outdated cavalry division. Navy The Austro-Hungarian Navy is almost completely composed of Austrian units. However, despite its growth since the reconquest of Venice in the Weltkrieg, it is considered outdated and underdeveloped when compared to the navies of the other Great Powers. Sea power has never been a priority in the Austrian foreign policy, and the navy itself is relatively little known and supported by the public. Activities such as open days and naval clubs have been unable to change the sentiment that the navy is just something "expensive but far away". Another point is that naval expenditures are for most of the time overseen by the Austrian War Ministry which is largely controlled by the army. Currently, the Austrian Navy comprises six battleships, one heavy cruiser, six light cruisers, sixteen destroyers, and ten submarines. Air Force As for the Navy, even the Austro-Hungarian Air Forces are almost completely composed of Austrian units. The Austrian Air Force comprises two squadrons of interceptors and two of naval bombers, for the support of the Navy. However, none of them is at full strength and there are no plans for an expansion in the future, as the Air Force is not considered a priority. Foreign Relations Very good relations with Germany, Hungary, Bosnia, Bohemia, Galicia-Lodomeria, Croatia, Italian Federation and the Kingdom of Spain. Friendly relations with Bulgaria, Ukraine, and the Netherlands. Unfriendly relations with Romania and Serbia. Category:Countries Category:European countries Category:Monarchies